Tom Meschery
Thomas Nicholas "Tom" Meschery (born October 26, 1938 as Tomislav Nikolayevich MeshcheryakovTOM MESCHERY: THE FIRST RUSSIAN IN THE NBA is a Russian-American poet and former professional basketball player. Life Overview Meschery was a power forward with a 10-year National Basketball Association career from 1961 to 1971. He played for the Philadelphia/San Francisco Warriors and the Seattle SuperSonics. He led the league in personal fouls in 1962, and played in the 1963 NBA All-Star Game. Youth Meschery was born as Tomislav Nikolayevich Meshcheryakov ( ) in Harbin, China. His parents were Russian emigrants who fled from the October Revolution in 1917. The Meschery family was later relocated to a Japanese internment camp near Tokyo during World War II. After the war, Meschery and his parents emigrated to the United States. It was also in that phase of his life where his father renamed the family "Meschery", and Tomislav Nikolayevich was renamed Thomas Nicholas, later was abbreviated to Tom. Living in San Francisco, California, Meschery attended Lowell High School. After graduating in 1957, he went to Saint Mary's College of California in Moraga, earning a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1961. Basketball career Standing 6 ft 6 in, Meschery also was a highly talented basketball player. After graduating from St. Mary's, he was drafted by the Philadelphia Warriors as the 7th pick overall in the 1961 NBA Draft. Meschery played alongside legend Wilt Chamberlain, to whom he later dedicated a poem. Meschery led the NBA in personal fouls in 1962 and played in the 1963 NBA All-Star Game. Chamberlain left the Warriors in 1965, returning to his home town Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to play with the 76ers. The Warriors however, strengthened by the arrival of Rick Barry, made it to the 1967 NBA Finals, in which they lost to Chamberlain's 76ers. After his NBA Finals appearance, Meschery was selected by the NBA's Seattle SuperSonics during the 1967 NBA Expansion Draft. In the SuperSonics' inaugural season, Meschery led the team in rebounds (10.2 per game) as well as personal fouls. He retired following the 1970-71 season, having played four seasons for the SuperSonics. After retiring as a player, Meschery became head coach of the ABA's Carolina Cougars, which he guided to a record of 35-49 in the 1971-72 season before being replaced by Larry Brown. Post-basketball Meschery published his debut book of poems in 1970, and returned to school after his coaching stint, earning a Master of Fine Arts degree from the University of Iowa in 1974. He studied poetry with Mark Strand, U.S. poet laureate, at the University of Washington. After earning his teaching credentials at University of Nevada, Reno, Meschery taught high school English in Reno, Nevada, until his retirement in 2005. He continued to write poems, which often relate to basketball, teaching, and being a Russian immigrant. Meschery lives in Alameda, California with his artist wife, Melanie Marchant Meschery. Meschery continues to write poems, fiction, and essays. He traces his love of writing to his Russian maternal ancestors, Alexei and Leo Tolstoy. He has recently completed a novel, 'Mr. Dolby's Dream' and a collection of poetry 'Some Men'. His blog 'Meschery's Musings' discusses a variety of controversial subject relating to sports. Each blog ends with a sports poem. Meschery says he wishes to introduce the public to fine contemporary poems whose subject is sports in the same way Garrison Keeler makes poetry in general available to his listeners on his morning radio broadcasts. Recognition His jersey, number 14, was retired by the Warriors. In 1973 Meschery was inducted into the St Mary's College Hall of Fame, and his basketball jersey hangs in McKeon Pavilion on campus. In 2002, Meschery was inducted into the Nevada Writers Hall of Fame in 2002, and into the Bay Area Sports Hall of Fame in 2003. Publications Poetry *''Over the Rim''. New York: McCall, 1970. *''Nothing We Lose Can Be Replaced: Poems''. Reno, NV: Black Rock Press / University of Nevada, Reno, 1999. *''Some Men''. Reno, NV: Black Rock Press / University of Nevada, Reno, 2012. *''Sweat: New and selected poems about sports''. Reno, NV: Black Rock Press / University of Nevada, Reno, 2014. Non-fiction *''Caught in the Pivot: A diary of a rookie coach in the exploding world of pro basketball''. New York: Dell, 1973. Except where noted, bibliographical information courtesy WorldCat.Search results = au:Tom Meschery, WorldCat, OCLC Online Computer Library Center Inc. Web, Dec. 13, 2014. See also *List of U.S. poets References Notes External links ;Books *Tom Meschery at Amazon.com ;About *Tom Meschery: NBA pioneer turned poet *Catching up with Tom Meschery *Tom Meschery: (Golden State) Warrior Poet at the Poetry Foundation. *Former NBA tough guy Tom Meschery a man of rhyme, reason, Los Angeles Times *[*Meschery's Musings on Sports, Literature and Life Tom Meschery's weblog. *BasketballReference.com: Tom Meschery (as player) *BasketballReference.com: Tom Meschery (as coach) Category:1938 births Category:Living people Category:Amateur Athletic Union men's basketball players Category:American poets Category:Carolina Cougars coaches Category:Chinese people of Russian descent Category:Chinese emigrants to the United States Category:National Basketball Association players with retired numbers Category:Parade High School All-Americans (boys' basketball) Category:People from San Francisco, California Category:Philadelphia Warriors draft picks Category:Philadelphia Warriors players Category:American people of Russian descent Category:Saint Mary's Gaels men's basketball players Category:San Francisco Warriors players Category:Seattle SuperSonics expansion draft picks Category:Seattle SuperSonics players Category:National Basketball Association All-Stars Category:20th-century poets Category:English-language poets Category:Poets